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Topic E-commerce
Asked 3 times across 2 UPSC exams over 1 years (2025–2026), peaking in 2026.
Key insights
- Most tested in CSE — 2 of 3 PYQs
- First appeared in CDS 2025 — 1 years before CSE 2026 (allied exams preview CSE)
- Most asked in 2026
- Recurs across 2 years (2025–2026)
How it travelled across exams
First appearance in each exam — the same idea, reframed.
CDS 2025 → CSE 2026
How the concept evolved
Rising — more than half its appearances (3 of 3) are since 2016.
Related concepts
Ideas UPSC tests alongside this one — keep exploring.
Sample questions
You've seen the pattern — here are a few of the actual PYQs.
CSE2026
An e-commerce revenue model where the seller has control over pricing but doesn't keep products in stock and instead transfers customer orders and shipment details to a third-party supplier, who then ships the goods directly to the customer, is called:
- A Dropshipping Model ✓
- B Affiliate Revenue Model
- C Transaction Fee Revenue Model
- D Agency Revenue Model
✓ Correct answer: (A)
Economy › Industry/Infra/MSME
CSE2026
Which one of the following best describes the key objective of India's 'Open Network for Digital Commerce' (ONDC) initiative?
- A To allow government control over all digital commerce transactions
- B To replace private e-commerce players
- C To break the dominance of large e-commerce platforms by enabling interoperability across networks ✓
- D To mandate UPI-based payments for all online transactions
✓ Correct answer: (C)
Economy › Industry/Infra/MSME
CDS2025
Which of the following statements about Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) is/are correct ?
- It was launched in 2021 by the Government of India
- Its aim is to democratize e-commerce in India
- India has surpassed China in 2024 in e-retail penetration. Select the answer
using the code given below :
- A 1, 2 and 3
- B 1 and 2 only ✓
- C 2 and 3 only
- D 3 only
✓ Correct answer: (B)
Economy › Industry/Infra/MSME
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